Fashion Has a Face: Pictured above is Naana Hayford. A contestant in the 2010 Miss Africa USA Pageant. She is from the country of Ghana and within the next 5 years she plans to being running an African Cultural Center that provides mentoring and educational services and training for vocational skills.

This years contestants for Miss Africa USA 2010 come representing a variety of the 53 countries in Africa. Miss Africa USA is a beauty pageant that is designed to help empower young African women to be leaders in their community, in Africa and the United States. All of the women participating in the contest are well educated at a respected University in the US, some are in the medical field, some are human rights activists and more. Each woman is using her talents to make an impact on her home country.

"This pageant helps make young women feel comfortable in themselves to accept who they are and be proud to share their heritage with the rest of the world. The organization also takes great pride in bringing Africa to America and providing opportunities for Americans to really experience a little piece of the African culture.
The Miss Africa USA delegates speak for Millions of women, children and communities that have no voice. These young women are seizing the opportunity that America presents to advocate for the less fortunate."

Some of the women have been victims of sex slavery, orphaned by genocide, or orphaned by parents who died of HIV/AIDs . There is a variety of different stories from so many different women who have gone through so much over the years, and now they are choosing to take something they love, fashion and beauty, and use it for the bettering of lives in Africa, and to show America the reality of what goes on in some of the most-war torn countries on that continent.

The past winners of the pageant have gone on to send a huge amount of medical supplies to Nigeria, to promote children's education in Liberia, and join forces with huge charity organizations, along with many other great causes.

It is inspiring to see these women being advocates for the things most near and dear to their hearts, and to still be doing something they love. But most of all, these women are being exactly who they are and because of it they are making a bold statement about what true beauty is. If you go on to http://www.missafricaunitedstates.com/ and peruse the profiles of the different contestants, their passions and dreams, you will see that this pageant is unlike any other. It isn't just about winning for the sake winning, but instead is about using the self-confidence and talent that they have to better the lives of others.

Miss Africa USA is also choosing to fuse fashion with hope.